Bringing Humanity back to the Workplace

[00:00:04] Speaker A: Opinions expressed in this episode are personal. They do not necessarily reflect the views. [00:00:09] Speaker B: Of this streaming platform. [00:00:14] Speaker A: Good day and welcome to another edition of let's be diverse. I am your host, Andrew Stout. This episode is dedicated to all my loved ones who supported me through this journey. Today, we're going to be discussing bringing back humanity to the workplace. I've been talking to a lot of people and you know, workplaces are everyone's having talking about their workplace and that. So I just thought it would be a great opportunity to talk about this topic and I have a super amazing guest that I thought would be perfect for this conversation. Her name is Allie Stone. So Allie Stone has been regular partner and leader in the hospitality industry since 2005. During that time, she was integrated in developing twelve successful businesses and teams. As a direct culture and leader development, Ali mastered a deep understanding of what it means to be truly connected as a leader and how that drives success in any business. Now, as an inspired leader, she has built a business dedicated to the transformational practice of bringing humanity back to the heart of business. Allie is an executive coach working towards her master designation and be an inspiring speaker and skilled workshop facilitator. The business operates in two integral arms. In the individual arm, Ali partners directly with women entrepreneurs and leaders, empowering them to thrive in their career businesses. The corporate arm focuses on organizations where ALI or collaborates with mid to senior level leadership teams, cultivating leadership presence and fostering meaningful connections with their people. At the inspired leader, we aim to inspire and empower individuals and organizations to achieve their full leadership potential while prioritizing a culture of authenticity and connection. Ali has worked with thousands of leaders from all levels of organizations. In 2022, Ali was awarded the Transformational Leader award by the Universal women's network and recognized as the most inspiring leadership development company by AI International. Ali is also a certified meditation teacher, a heart math resilient mentor, and an ICF certified coach working towards her master's certification. She is active and loves yoga, biking, hiking and spending time with her two dogs. Allie when I first met her, she's just one of those amazing individuals. You just simply just gravitate to her the second that you meet her. And I just felt like that instantly, so I thought, what a great opportunity to have her on. So here we go. Welcome to the show, Allie. We are super excited to have you on for a chat today. [00:03:18] Speaker B: Thanks Andrew. I'm so excited to talk to you too. I feel like, you know, when we first met each other and we had our initial conversation, I left it inspired and like motivated, and I felt like we just really jived really well. So, yeah, I'm super jazzed to have a conversation today with you. [00:03:34] Speaker A: Yeah, I agree with you. I think it was one of those conversations where I think we. You have those conversations where you hang up and you go, wow. Like, that was a super energizing conversation. Like, I hung up and I was pretty much energized, like, the whole rest of the day. And I just gravitated to everything that you were saying and all your words that you were telling me. It just was amazing to me. So I truly appreciated it and super happy to have you here today. [00:04:03] Speaker B: Thank you. Thank you. [00:04:05] Speaker A: You're very welcome. How are things going with you now, tila? Give us the deets on what's going on. [00:04:12] Speaker B: Things are good. I mean, yeah, things are really busy for me right now. I'm prepping this week for two keynotes. So I'm the keynote at the forewing military women's conference in Cold Lake on Saturday, and then I also have a keynote in Toronto next week. So I have a busy kind of ten days here right now. So when those things come up, it's a lot of, you know, prepping and spending time alone and talking to a wall. I don't know if other keynote speakers do that, but that's what I do. So it gets a little lonely leading up to it, but it's super. It's super exciting. I'm excited to go to Toronto. It'll be my first time out east for an engagement, so I'm looking forward to it. [00:04:49] Speaker A: I understand exactly what you say. Because when I, before I ever begin a podcast, before I even, I tell everybody I'm going to set up whatever, check the Internet, check my microphone, and I do. While I'm waiting for the guest, I do do a little bit of a rundown, reading the. The notes and trying to get an understanding of what the conversation is going to be. And kind of, it's almost like kind of getting myself psyched up for it. So it's a bit of a routine. It's a routine that I've started and it kind of gets me psyched up. [00:05:15] Speaker B: Yeah, totally. And it's a good practice, right? At least you know what's going on when you get there. [00:05:21] Speaker A: Exactly. Well, I'm glad to hear the things are going well. It sounds like you got a lot of good things and fun things going on. Exciting to be able to speak in front of people. I'm sure give them your message and I'm sure that they are gonna all gravitate to you for sure. Like, everybody that I've spoken to about you gravitates to you as well. So I'm sure it's gonna be something else for them. [00:05:43] Speaker B: Thank you. [00:05:44] Speaker A: You're welcome. Before we begin, I always have a fun question. Get things going with my guess, are you ready for yours today? [00:05:52] Speaker B: I am so ready, and I'm so curious. [00:05:57] Speaker A: So my question to you is, if you didn't have to work to make money, how would you spend your time, and what would you do or create? [00:06:07] Speaker B: Ooh, really good question. So much. Okay. So I think I would spend a lot of my time on the ocean, like, somewhere around bodies of water. I feel like that's really, like, my calming, happy space. I always say when I'm near the ocean, it's like, so I would do that, and I think I would probably create some sort of program or charitable effort or movement that helps women that I don't know. I want to say, like, not necessarily in, like, underprivileged countries, but, like, women who deaf don't have the same privileges that maybe I have. Help them, you know, find ways to get into careers, to maybe get the clothing, to get the interview, to get the skills to get into an interview. I don't know. Maybe something like that would be really cool. I often think, how. How am I going to give back? Right? Like, how am I going to give back in my career? And I feel like that would just be a really beautiful thing to do, just to help women who, I guess, in another word, would be otherwise unavailable or unable to work with me at a fee. Right. And so if I didn't have to make money, it'd be wonderful just to do it with any woman that needed it. [00:07:18] Speaker A: Well, I got to say that for you, not knowing what the question was ahead of time, that was probably one of the best answers I've ever heard. Like, that is super, super prepared. So people are. It was so good that people are gonna think that I'm lying, and they don't guess. Doesn't know ahead of time. You may. You made it look like it was so easy there. So I really appreciate that. Thank you so much for. For having fun with me, and thank you so much for giving us such a great answer. Again, it tells us so much about you, for sure. Why don't we start off with you telling us a little bit about you, your story, and, of course, your why. [00:07:58] Speaker B: Yeah, for sure. That sounds good. And so, you know, as we were kind of saying, it's kind of a loaded question. So where do you take it? But I think the thing that connected us when we met each other was my why and why I do what I do. So, you know, we're gonna talk a little bit about this today, but a really big part of what I do and the thing that I talk a lot with other leaders about is bringing humanity back to business. And now I was really blessed to have a career with the original Joe's restaurant groups for almost 17 years. For the last ten years of that career, I was the director of leadership development and culture. And I just. Andrew. I grew, and I learned so much, and it was so incredible, and I had so much purpose and passion in what I did. It was just such an incredible journey, and it was all based around people. It was all based around this connection to people, this belief in people. And it truly inspired me, and it still inspires me to this day. You know, there was a lot of things that happened in that time in hospitality, running that organization that were big moments, big infractions, some big tragedies in our lives that we had to navigate. And I always look back on that time, and I think, man, if. If we didn't have that belief, if I didn't have that belief in people, I don't know how we would have ever gotten through those things. And so, as I came to a place in my career where I started to move out of original Joe's and into the inspired leader, it became clear to me that a lot of other businesses and industries leaders don't think this way. Right? We often think business is about a bottom line, creating a product, putting something out into the world, but none of this happens without people. And so, yeah, it's been a really big part of what I do and what I share now. And so there was a really big moment in my life, too, in 2018, when my husband and I worked in original Joe's together, partners together, and he became ill after he ran a marathon in Japan, and nothing was ever the same after that again. And it completely changed my life. It completely changed the way I looked at leading and running a business and an organization. And so much of that is what has brought me to where I am now, because when these things happen in our lives, it completely changes the vantage point through which we see things. Right. [00:10:16] Speaker A: Wow. Such an amazing story there. So much to pack in, so much that I want to delve into there. First of all, I totally agree with you. It's based on people. And I do agree with you 100% that I believe that companies I think have forgotten. Yes, it's nice to make the dollar and nice we need to make our money so company survives so that they can keep their employees afloat. I totally get that. [00:10:43] Speaker B: What? [00:10:44] Speaker A: I feel like there are ways that you can keep employees engaged and happy within an organization and not make them feel like they're just a number. And I feel like it's super important. I was talking to somebody just today, and they asked me, you know, what's two words about yourself? And I said, the two words for me are collaboration and building rapport. I feel they're super important. And I feel that without one, without the other is you can't, you know, like you need both. My father, when he was alive, he had taught me, he said, if you. All you need to do is remember this. When you are working or you're trying to deal with people, if you are genuine with them, and if you connect with them, they're gonna a be willing to work with you or they're gonna be willing to buy from you. And that's something that's that he taught me at a very young age, and it stuck with me to this day, even that he's not here anymore. It stuck with me to this day. And I'm seeing it as, you know, going through fruition with stuff that I'm trying to accomplish as well, that, you know, if you're genuine and if you are who you say you are, and if you are someone who is the same person on the phone, compared to in front of a video, compared to talking to them face to face, they're the same individual. No one would say, well, yeah, he's totally different on video than phone. You want to be the same person all the time and not just being genuine. When you're genuine, it's easy to do that. You don't have to pretend to do that or try to do it. It's just part of your nature. [00:12:32] Speaker B: Yeah, totally. And I think so many of us don't take the time to really delve into what is genuine for us. And I think that's when these walls get built up and these armors and people show up as people who they don't want to be. They show up as leaders who they don't want to be. Right. And so this is the work. It's like peeling back the layers and figuring out who we are at the core and how we really want to show up. And that really is bringing humanity back to business. Right. Not to be cliche. [00:12:59] Speaker A: No, it totally is. But it brought you, it brought us to segue into the conversation. So I love that you said that. So what I want to know from you is, what is humanity and why? I know we kind of talked a little bit about it, but why is it so important? I want to kind of delve into that a little bit deeper. [00:13:18] Speaker B: Yeah, I just. I mean, I just think it's everything. So. I mean, Brene Brown said it so well, but she said human beings are hardwired for connection, and everything in business is a connection. It's a connection to another person, to another person, to another person that builds a business. Right? Like, these are how these things exist. And so I think there's this, like, really important piece. You know, I kind of already said this, but that gets. Often gets missed in business, and we tend to think it's about the product we're creating or what we're bringing, what the business is bringing to the world, but none of that would happen without people. And so the connections that we make, the relationships that we forge or develop together, is so incredibly important, because if we don't do that, we haven't done the foundational work that will create the longevity for our business. Now, does our business still have to produce something, put something out into the world? 100% it does. If it doesn't do that, we're dead in the water. Right? So there's a. There's, you know, give and take to all of this. But I always say that that's like, the fuel for the fire. But the real fire that we're fueling is the relationships, the connections, the experiences that we're making at work or that we're creating at work as leaders for the people who work with and for us. Right. [00:14:39] Speaker A: So how do we implement humility in the workplace? So I know we've talked about it. We know it's important. How do we go about doing that? [00:14:47] Speaker B: I think, you know, for. If I'm just going to take the perspective of a leader, if that's okay, because that's kind of usually who I'm working with. But I think that when it comes to humility, it comes, like, if we're worried about that, it comes down to a lack of knowledge of ourselves, right? And so it comes back to. So you're using the word genuine. I would use the word authenticity. I would say, you know, how. How well do you know yourself? How well do you know your values as a human being and then as a leader, the values that you plan to bring to your career, the values that you plan to share with the people who you get to lead. And I always say leading a team or a person or, you know, an organization is not only a responsibility, it's also an honor. And I think when we start to see it that way, we change our perspective. We've changed the way we see the world and the way that we show up as leaders. And so I as leaders, we have to lead ourselves first, number one. Right. We got to do the work. We got to get to know ourselves. We got to be able to be clear and articulate who we are and how we plan to show up as leaders. And if we can't do that, we're not only letting ourselves down, we're letting down the people that we lead, ultimately. [00:16:00] Speaker A: Yeah. And I totally agree with you, and I believe that there's a little bit of passion that needs to be there as well, Ali. So, I mean, if you're taking a position as a manager or leader within an organization, but you don't really have the passion for it, and you. You're not going to put your full heart into it, which means that something's going to lack either the production of the company or people who are looking to have some help or they're needing to lead or they need assistance in something. And if you're not fully there, present for them, then, you know, you might as well not do it. [00:16:40] Speaker B: Right. [00:16:40] Speaker A: Because, you know, we don't want to just be doing it for the paycheck. We want to be doing it because we feel that we can do that job to its best capabilities and that we're going to build our team and have an engaged, and I like to call it a safe work environment for everybody to come into every day. [00:17:04] Speaker B: Yeah. And I also think that you have a really interesting point there. And it goes back to that. It goes back to that clarity as to who we are, whether that is a team member or a leader. And when we have that clarity, we can then also choose the best role for us. And maybe that's not leading. Right. Maybe that's not where we're meant to be, and that's totally okay. Not everybody has to be a leader and run an organization and run a team, because that's a lot of work as well. And there's so much impact and contribution that happens on every single level. And sometimes we forget that. [00:17:39] Speaker A: I talked about this story on another one of my episodes, but this, a friend of mine works for a company, and she started there, and everybody in her department is moving to different departments, either getting promotions to management positions or what have you they keep approaching her, Ali, and asking her, hey, you know, listen, we have this department free that we'd like you to manage. And we, and she'll, and she says to them, no, I'm good. And they'd be like, well, no, I'm, you know, you know, I think that you would be so good at managing this department and you're so good at what you do and you're such a great teacher, and we really feel you'd be good at it. And she'd be like, no. She says, I told them, this is what I want to do. I want to start at, you know, I started eight to four, and I want to go home at the end of the day. I want to have supper with my family and I want to relax with them, maybe watch a little bit of tv, play a board game, read a book. I don't want to have to worry about answering, looking at my cell phone and checking emails at 06:00 at night or taking a call because somebody really needs something really desperately and I have to open up my laptop and do work. She says, I don't want that. When I heard that, I'm like, oh, my God, like, absolutely. Like, if you're totally okay with that, there's people that are okay, you know, working on excel sheets all day and entering data. That's okay. There's nothing wrong with that. Somebody needs to do that or else if we were all leaders and then nobody would do that job, that who would do it, right? So it's got to be something. It's got it. Somebody's got to do those jobs. So if you're happy to do it, then I'm happy for you. [00:19:29] Speaker B: Yeah, totally. And there's this thing about fitting people, not trying to fix people. You know, we're not trying to, like, put people into roles that aren't right for them. I have seen that over and over and over, and I've done it in my career and promoted people, you know, in original Joe's to a higher position, and they were super happy in the position they were in. And then they go into this next level role and it wasn't, a, what they wanted, b, they weren't ready for it. Right. And then all of a sudden we have all of these issues. And so I think there's a lot we can, we're not really going to go there today, but as leaders, there's a lot you can unpack in regards to how you transition team members into other roles and the conversations and discussions that you have with them, even before that happens. I love that your friend says, no, I love that because she knows. She knows what she wants. Right. And that's beautiful. [00:20:20] Speaker A: Absolutely. Do you think that organizations believe that culture does not affect the success? [00:20:26] Speaker B: Well, I think it depends on the leader. So here's the thing about focusing in on culture. It's hard to have KPI's. It's hard for it to be super tangible other than, you know, tenure and things that are measured over longer periods of time. There isn't a quick turnaround fix on it. And so it's hard for leaders to equate when they can take something like a p and l and say, okay, well, this is where we're seeing our gains. This is where we're seeing our losses. Now, the thing about culture is that it's a long term game. And it's something that if you commit to as a leader and you don't take your foot off the gas on it, if you believe in it, you commit to it and you commit to your people, it will create sustainability and longevity in your business in the long run. And this is what we all are striving for. But we live in such a society and culture of like, now. We want results now, right? Like, we need to turn this p and l around, whatever it is. I mean, you see this with like the big tech companies right now, right? They lay off people just to meet their share numbers or whatever, right? Like it's just crazy. Or their quotas and then they'll just hire them again next year. And that's not really taking care of people. Right. That's not a focus on culture and that's not a focus on the relationships that we have now. I'm going to venture to say that that costs them a lot of money in the long run. Even in the short term, it makes their p and l look better. [00:21:58] Speaker A: So I was, oh, you surely did. I was talking to somebody yesterday and they were talking about culture and they were saying that there's so many different, like, it's very diverse. Our world is very diverse now. And there's so many different cultures that come and are moving to Canada or the states. So when you're, you know, she's saying you could be like a team of five and you could have somebody from us, somebody from Canada, somebody from Italy, somebody from Greece, and somebody from Thailand. Right now they're all different. So she says, when she's talking about culture, when you're, you're talking about culture, we have to look at the different types of people on our team. And you can't do the same thing for one person, the same as the other, because they're there. The culture is different. They don't understand. Maybe they don't understand what you're trying to say. Maybe they're not getting the message. Maybe you have to do it a little bit differently. Maybe you have to do more one on ones with them compared to someone else. You can just have one quick conversation, and they're good. So I think it's just understanding who you have around you, what your surroundings are, and going with it. And once you understand that, it's a lot easier for you, and they're gonna appreciate that you are willing to understand where they're coming from, because they might even be even just where they're coming from. They have different. They grew up in different ways of life. My mother was french canadian, and my father was from Barbados. So the cultures of the way to bring up a child were totally different. The food that I ate was totally different. One, you know, when it was my dad, when his west indian food, jerk chicken and rice and black eyed peas, where my mother was, the tortillas and that. So it's. It's a different culture. They grew up in that culture. So for me to be in that culture, to live in different cultures, was. Was unbelievable. I. You know, sometimes people ask me, like, how did you do it? And I don't know. I just did it. [00:24:18] Speaker B: Yeah, I think that's a really, first of all, really cool that you got that experience. Like, I'm listening. I'm like, wow, what a cool upbringing, right? Like, you got to experience two totally different worlds from your parents coming together. So that's really beautiful. I also think, going back to your comments about leaders, like, being flexible and working with their people and understanding their different perspectives. I also think even before that, Andrew, though, a leader needs to be clear on what kind of culture they want to create. What is the feeling that you want to create in this ecosystem? How do you want people to feel when they come to work? What do you want them to experience? And then we bring in everybody's diverse perspective, and we create this, like, beautiful concoction of it all. And everybody's welcome to contribute to it, right from their own vantage point in the world, from their own experiences. And that's what makes a culture really beautiful, because people feel safe to be themselves. They feel seen, they feel heard. They feel like they're part of something bigger. And that, my friend, is when it gets really beautiful. [00:25:24] Speaker A: Oh, for sure it does, because it becomes memorable, and they go home and they go, wow, my, you know, my, you know, their partner. How was your day? Oh, my God, what a great day. I sat with my manager, and, you know, especially if it was like, an onboarding situation where it's the first day and the manager sits down with them and it gives them, like, a clear expectations of what they're expecting of them for the job. So six, eight months down the road, this person's not, like, surprised of what's going on. They know exactly what to expect, not just about the job, but what they, as a leader, expect from the employee. So they know. They're not surprised. They're not shocked when stuff happens, when things go arrears and things got to be fixed. They know. They know exactly how things are going to go because they was communicated right from the. Right from the get go. And I think that communication factor we, you know, is key there as well. I think we can never over communicate, right? [00:26:27] Speaker B: Oh, never. Like, and when you think you've communicated it enough, you haven't really, you know. And so there's an exercise I often do with leaders. I'll just quickly share it because I think it really relates to what you're saying. But as leaders, we often think we need to get our expectations clear with our people. Right. We need to be like, I need you to do X, Y, and Z. This is how you can be a contributing member of the team. Great, great communication. We need to do that. But I think there's a piece prior to that where as leaders, we need to be able to tell our people what we are offering them. [00:27:02] Speaker A: Right. [00:27:03] Speaker B: So as a leader, I will offer you support. I will be there for you when you need encouragement. I will give you the proper training and development. I will encourage your growth throughout your career here. I will support you through your life transitions, whatever that is for you. That resonates with you. I think when you can articulate that for your people, it's very meaningful as well. [00:27:24] Speaker A: Yeah, I totally agree with you. Because they need to know that. Know when they come to see their leader, they need to know that the leader understands. Okay. Do I need, you know, does. Do I need to give them feedback on what they're going through, or do I need to. And I call it listen with pause. Do I need to listen with pause? Do I need to let them vent? You know, and then when they're done, they'll tell me, oh, you know, thank you so much for listening. I totally appreciate it. And that's the understanding. Right. And again, we say that communication. That's that communication factor of wondering, understanding, and like you said before, seeing, hearing, and understanding what the employee needs and what they desire. Yeah, for sure. So I think we kind of delved in this, but I want to kind of go this a little bit further here. Ali. Is creating a culture of kindness, the sole responsibility of a leader? [00:28:20] Speaker B: Such a good question. I giggled when I thought I was like, oh, that's a good question. I like that one. No, I don't believe it is. But here's what I believe. It starts with the leader. The leader always goes first. The leader always says, I'm willing to step into the line of fire. I'm willing to model what it looks like to be kind. I'm willing to model what it looks like to be respectful, whatever that is. I think the rest of the team then sees those behaviors and adapts them into a culture. So, no, it's not only the responsibility of the leader, but I do really believe leaders need to go first. I think we need to model the way. [00:28:59] Speaker A: I agree with you 100%. I think that, yeah, leader. I talk about this often. When I was a kid, I played follow the leader, and it was a great game that I played. And you don't think of it when you're a kid, but as you go older and after I studied, got into HR and studied it a little bit more, then you start to think about this stuff and. A little bit more. And now when I look at a leader, and I'm very visual and you see things and people follow what the leader is doing, so if they're gonna be rip roaring upset, and they're gonna go, and I can't believe this, well, then they're gonna follow. Right? Whereas if they're very calm, cool, collective, they're relaxed, they're like, it's okay, guys. We're gonna fix this. Let's, you know, let's have a meeting, and let's go over this, and let's fix it right away, then everybody's gonna be calm, and they're gonna be relaxed. So I think you're absolutely right. They follow what the person is, and that's not just situational. I think it's the everyday way that the person is. So, I mean, if they're expecting, you know, if you're snappy with your employees, well, the chances are, after a while, you know, the employee is going to get fed up with it, and they might bite back, and then you will wonder, well, why did they know? Why are they biting at me? Well, because you you know, you bit at me, you know, since I've been here for last six months, you know, now I'm. I have had it up to here now, and I'm gonna bite. I might bite back now, for sure, you know, and then they're gonna be there. Like I said, they're shocked. So I think it's super important that we do that, for sure. [00:30:44] Speaker B: Yeah. I totally agree with you. The way I learned it, I don't know if you ever heard, this was, like, the Jekyll and Hyde manager, too, right? So, like, you have this manager who will, like, show up one way one day and is, like, totally stressed out, and the next day they come in and they're like. And nobody knows what to expect. Right. And so that's really hard on team members. They don't know how to respond to that. So, of course, they get to a place where they don't know how to respond in a way that is, like, healthy or, you know what I mean? Nurtures a good relationship. So, again, it comes back to the leader, right? [00:31:21] Speaker A: Absolutely. [00:31:22] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:31:23] Speaker A: What do you think the future looks like for culture and kindness, for leadership? What do you think the future looks like for it? [00:31:30] Speaker B: I think it looks good. No, I really do. I really think it looks good. I think more and more leaders are evolving consciously. Now, of course, we still have some leaders who see the world differently, and that's totally their perspective and their prerogative. So I'm not here to tell anybody they are right or wrong. All I'm here to do when I'm working with leaders is just to try to help them see. See a different perspective, help them see a different way of engaging with their people that maybe creates a deeper sense of meaning for them and their people at work. That creates a shared sense of purpose, that creates this feeling like we're all in this together. And what I know about that is when that happens, it's beautiful. The time we spend at work is amazing. We love it. We're happy. We go home. We're happier people with our families, and who wouldn't want that at the end of the day, right? And so, yeah, I think consciousness is evolving. I think leaders are evolving the way they see their businesses and the way they show up. And I love it. It makes me really excited. I get really geeked up about it all the time. As you know, we already had a really long conversation about it. But, yeah, I'm very passionate about it, and I just think we spent a lot of time at work. Right. We're going to spend a lot of our lives at work. And my hope for leaders and for people like leaders who want to lead in this way, let's call it, of bringing humanity back to business, that they see this and they create this experience so that they can all just have a better experience of their time in their lives because they don't really get a do over. Right. This was kind of it, depending on what you believe, but kind of it. Right. So I hope we can enjoy it. [00:33:22] Speaker A: Yep. I totally agree with you 100%. I think that it is getting better. Do you think, though, that. Do you see that it's a lot of these leaders, it's a learning thing for them. Like, so, for example, I feel like there's a lot of leaders that are put into a situation where they're, they're put into that situation and then I like to call them, they're like almost like lame docs. Like, they're put in that situation. They can't do any good because they've never been there before. [00:33:50] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:33:50] Speaker A: And then I have a friend of mine who works for a company and her company has a succession plan, or they do succession planning. So she goes to all over Canada, she goes to different locations and she'll have meetings with managers of departments and she'll say, listen, we have this management position that possibly could be coming up in the next six months at this location. Is there anybody in your department that you feel could fit that bill or be a good manager? And the person will say, yeah, I think Samantha would be a great manager. She's good at her job. I really feel she's a good teacher and she's a good motivator. She knows how to talk with people. I feel she's good. So then they would, she'd go to see Samantha, she'd say, listen, Samantha, your boss, Ron, just said to me that he feels that you'd be a great fit for a management position. What we're going to do is we're going to put you in. If you'd like, we can put you into a six month program. You're still going to do your job, but we're going to do a six month program with you and we're going to work with you and teach you how to become a manager. Then when there's that opening does open up, we have you ready, set, go to put you into that position. So you know right away she's not fighting a losing battle. Right away. She still might have some struggles, but at least she knows that there's that support system there for her is where I'm going. [00:35:16] Speaker B: Yeah. And there, and you were saying there. Sometimes people get input into these roles and they're kind of like a laying duck. Right. My term would be the hung out to dry, you know, and it's like, so here's the thing. I think the organizations that have leaders that have this evolving level of consciousness, this different way of thinking, they believe in development. They believe in growth and development, and they believe that if people, their people aren't growing, that they're stagnant, that they now fall into the status quo. And so they have a really, they place a really high value on that and it's not obvious. And those are the leaders I work with. Right. Because if leaders aren't interested in growth and development, they're not. They're not even going to talk to me because that's just not the realm I work in. Right. So. But I do see, I do see some that are just starting to touch the edges of it and starting to believe in it and then others that have been doing it for years and have these amazing cultures. And it's really beautiful to see all the different spectrums of it and how when leaders start to embrace this, how it excites them, it excites their team, how people get motivated, how creativity and innovation start to spur. So it's really neat to be a part of it and to just feel the energy that comes from all of that, too. So. But, yeah, I mean, people definitely are sometimes laying ducks, too. And it's a really hard world that way. And I think that's where it comes back to us as individuals and making sure that we know what we want, how we want to lead, if we're going to be leaders and finding the right position for us. Because as an individual, you are absolutely within your right to find the role that's best for you, too. Right? [00:36:53] Speaker A: And you just said something to me that just caught my attention. You said, some of the leaders I work with, the ones that want and the ones that don't, don't work with me, I feel that those ones are the ones that should work with you. And I always tell myself, and I always say to people that, you know, when, if you're a leader, if you were saying to yourself, I know everything, that's when you're gonna get yourself snake bit. You have to be a humble leader and you have to be always willing to learn. I call myself a lifelong learner and not afraid to say it, because I always want to learn. I'm a sponge and I want to take everything that I can in, and I'm always gonna be like that, and I'm never gonna stop because I feel the second that I do, it's gonna be game. It's gonna be lights out for me because there's other people that are going to surpass me because they're going to want to be lifelong learners. I don't want that. I want to continuously learn and get better at not just myself as a leader, but as a human and continue to grow. [00:37:53] Speaker B: Yeah, I think the moment a leader claims to know it all, they've stepped out of leadership. They've stepped into, like, a self serving mode, and it's not serving the company. So, yeah, I think that's a really important reflection, and I often think of it in the realm of being curious, the moment we stop being curious, the moment we stop asking those questions. I love that you're like, I got a funky question for you today. I'm like, perfect. Bring it on. I don't know what I'm going to say, but, like, that keeps us thinking. That keeps us on our edge. Those things are super important. That is leading. Right. [00:38:26] Speaker A: And it's funny that you said that because, yes, you are one of those people that I do send those. I have a silly question for you. You know, and that's what's part of collaborating and building a community and building that is you're able to send those questions to people. But, yes, I kind of giggle when I say, especially to you. I kind of giggle to myself when I send it to you. Oh, my God. The silly question that I'm going to ask you because I have it. And I think it's, you know, I say silly, but it, you know, nothing is really ever silly. It's just, you know, don't be afraid to ask it. So I just say it to be, you know, a little bit comical and say, hey, you know, it's, you know, I got a silly question for you here. You know, are you ready? [00:39:03] Speaker B: Like, yeah. You have a light. You have a light hearted attitude, which I love. Right? Like that. That brings so much to life in the world, too. So I think that's an important characteristic of yours. [00:39:12] Speaker A: Well, I appreciate that. Um, if you had the opportunity to advise your 16 year old self, what advice would you give her? [00:39:23] Speaker B: A lot. [00:39:28] Speaker A: I was expecting that answer. [00:39:30] Speaker B: Where do you want me to start knowing? Like, a lot, though, for sure. Okay. So I was like, I was a travel child for sure. I was. I honestly, I was lucky that I even graduated high school. I was bullied through high school and was afraid to show up to classes and almost got expelled. And I had a rough go. I had a rough go in high school. And so, you know, when I read that question, I was like, what would I say? I would tell myself that you got this, that you can do this and things will get better. And so, I mean, that was a space in my life that was really hard for me. And looking back now, though, Andrew, I learned so much from it. I learned so much about how I want to show up in the world, the type of woman I want to be, the way I want to treat other women, other men, other human beings. Right? And so, yeah, it was really pivotal. It was hard, but it was also important. [00:40:19] Speaker A: I agree with you 100%. I was there, too. I've, you know, you kind of think about it as you get older, and there's kind of things that kind of flash back and you wonder, well, yeah, maybe, you know, it was. And you kind of wonder at the time, like, are they just kind of fooling around or just having fun or whatever? But, yeah, you know, I. You know, it's happened. It happened to me as well. It's even happened to me at a later stage in life, working for a company. And it wasn't a good space, I'll admit. But I got out of it, and I promised myself, the one thing I did promise myself is, like you said, you got this. And I did say to myself, I'm never gonna let that happen to me ever again. I'm never gonna let somebody expose me or treat me or downplay what I'm wanting to do. So now I just do what I feel is right. And as long as I have that support system behind me, I continue. I'm going to continue to do it. So it's amazing how what we realize, we don't realize it when we're younger, but we, as we get older, we realize, hey, yeah, that did happen to me, you know? [00:41:25] Speaker B: Yeah, yeah. [00:41:26] Speaker A: Interesting. This has been such a great conversation. Any final thoughts today? [00:41:31] Speaker B: I think, you know, we talked about a lot of things, so I'm just going back through my brain through it, but I think for anybody listening to this today or. And you're, you know, thinking about who you are as a leader, and maybe this is spurring some thoughts for you. And what do I do? How do I write? How do I. How do I take the next steps? How do I figure this out? I would just say, number one, really sit down and assess who you are as a leader. Get clearer on what you value, the things that are important to you. And that really is the start of the journey, because once you can understand and articulate those things, you can start to use those as your beacons, as your lighthouses, and they can move you towards the type of leader you want to be, not the type of the leader the world tells you you have to be, because that is the problem. We need to be authentic and genuine and ourselves. I would never be the same leader you would be. And that's what's beautiful about both of us. Right? And so the more leaders we have that are willing to lean into their authenticity and say, this is me, better world it'll be. [00:42:31] Speaker A: I love what you said, value, because I think that values are something that people kind of put out. I think people, a lot of people, I find, put that out there. They say values, but I've been asking some people a lot lately, like, you know, what are your values? What are your. What's your core values? And it's amazing to me. Some people have had trouble to answer that to me. So I think it's okay. You know, it's great to say you have values, but I really feel like the most important thing is not to say you have values, but actually to know what those values are and why you believe in those values. You know, it's very easy to pick. Pick one, but, you know, you need to understand why. [00:43:12] Speaker B: Yes. And most people, Andrew, will never do this work in their lives. And so when I do this work with leaders, they're like, why? Oh, this is really cool. I'm like, I know. Now you can articulate it, right? You've always felt it. You've always felt it somewhere deep inside. But now you can actually say it. Now you can, like, move in that direction. It's. It's like personal power. It's so beautiful, right? [00:43:35] Speaker A: It certainly is. Well, I want to take the time to thank you for coming on today, Ellie. Like I mentioned it before, I'll say it again. You are phenomenal in individual. You know, sometimes we say that somebody inspires us or keeps us going. We love to listen to them speak. And that's the case for you. I could probably listen to you speak for hours and hours because the stuff that comes out, the stuff that you say, just energizes. You know, I could see how energizes a room because it energizes me as an individual when I hear you speaking. So I just love listening to you. Love hearing you speak. You're like I said, you're a phenomenal individual. Very truly inspiring. And I love the fact that you took the time to spend with me tonight to do this podcast episode. It's truly an honor to have you on as a guest. [00:44:30] Speaker B: Oh, thank you. Thank you. And my deepest gratitude. Right back at you. Thanks, Andrew. [00:44:35] Speaker A: You're welcome. So on behalf of myself from my guest, Ali would like to thank you all for listening today. And until next time, be safe. And remember, everyone, that if we all work together, we can accomplish anything. [00:44:58] Speaker B: You. [00:44:58] Speaker A: Have been listening to. Let's be diverse with Andrew Stout. [00:45:02] Speaker B: To stay up to date with future content, hit subscribe.